/sep"euh ray'teuhr/ , n.
1. a person or thing that separates.
2. any of various apparatus for separating one thing from another, as cream from milk, steam from water, or wheat from chaff.
3. Elect. a device that prevents metal contact between plates of opposite charge in a storage battery.
4. Mach. retainer 1 (def. 3).
[ 1600-10; separator, equiv. to L separa ( re ) to SEPARATE + -tor -TOR ]